The Clachan - Living History Museum
A clachan is historically a group of small single-story cottages, usually
belonging to farming or fishing people and sited on poor land. Each cottage
in the Folk
Village ‘clachan’ recreates a different era of Irish history. Cottages
are neatly white-washed, with a traditional half-door design to keep the animals
out and the people in. Rooves are thatched in the distinctive rounded Donegal
style, tied down securely with rope and pegs to protect the thatching from the
fierce westerly winds off the ocean.

In 2011
we opened two new exhibition houses - a traditional thatched
shop/pub with a shoemakers in the lower room, and a Fisherman's
cottage dedicated to our history concerning the local fishermen and the sea.

Seamus
Campbell remembers using a series of implements during his childhood
and youth at Lisnakelly, Ballymackney, Monaghan,
Ireland. Filmed with permission at the Folk Museum at Glencolmcille in
Donegal, Ireland.

Musician Chilli Reid plays The Dingle Regatta, Sí Beg Sí Mor
and the Wind That Shakes on the Barley on the Whistle as background. Video
footage and images by Máire McSorley

Fisherman's
Cottage

The
Fisherman’s cottage is an exhibition house opened
in 2011 together with the Pub-Grocer. The Fisherman’s cottage
depicts the local fishermen’s living conditions and is
similar to the type of one-roomed cottage lived in by artist
Rockwell Kent and poet Dylan Thomas when they visited the area
in the early 20th century. Some artwork associated with their
visit to Glencolmcille is on
display in the School house and Tea Rooms.

Local people kindly donated their time, artifacts,
fishing knowledge and photographs for the development of this
cottage.

Teach
Scoile na nDunhacha - Dooey School House

The Dooey School House building is representative of a 19th century local
school. In
it you will find a display of old photographs and historical information plus
a collection
of
old artifacts. Examples of Dylan Thomas's poetry and information on Rockwell
Kent (artist) is on display in the School House.

Pub-Grocer & Shoemakers
Until the spread of modern supermarkets in Ireland, Irish pubs usually
combined the sale of alcohol with the sales of tea, bread, sugar,
salted bacon, sweets for children and other staples. A further side
business
might also be conducted from the premises. Pub-grocers are becoming
rare but can still be found in Ireland today, and there is one such
example here in the Folk Village.